Touring Books

[Muddyfox]

I recently read Anne Mustoe's a bike ride (12000 miles around the world) and i really struggled to finish the book, she is a retired school headmistress and it definately showed in the book by the continual and very boring history lesson about the romans, but my faith has been restored by Barbara Savage (miles from nowhere) i'm only half way through the book but it is probably the best book i've read about touring yet (although Alastair Humphreys 2 books are a close call)

Simon

 

[rich p]

I recently read Anne Mustoe's a bike ride (12000 miles around the world) and i really struggled to finish the book, she is a retired school headmistress and it definately showed in the book by the continual and very boring history lesson about the romans, but my faith has been restored by Barbara Savage (miles from nowhere) i'm only half way through the book but it is probably the best book i've read about touring yet (although Alastair Humphreys 2 books are a close call)

Simon

Sounds like a good recommendation Simon. I love the AH books as you know.

How did you get on with Riding with Ghosts BTW?

 

[Ticktockmy]

I recently read Anne Mustoe's a bike ride (12000 miles around the world) and i really struggled to finish the book, she is a retired school headmistress and it definately showed in the book by the continual and very boring history lesson about the romans, but my faith has been restored by Barbara Savage (miles from nowhere) i'm only half way through the book but it is probably the best book i've read about touring yet (although Alastair Humphreys 2 books are a close call)

Simon

Are you aware she passed away in November last year.

 

[bigjim]

It seems to be a mystery what happened to her. The only info i found was that she passed away in hospital in Syria. I always wondered if she would have survived in a european hospital. I have a few of her books and sometimes she did go on a bit but I just whizzed through the boring stuff, when she wasn't on a history lesson she was quite good. I liked her phiposphy on cycling. I have a couple of Edward Enfields books that are quite good. His simple take on cycling is refreshing. Sort of, grab a bike and go.

 

[Ticktockmy]

It seems to be a mystery what happened to her. The only info i found was that she passed away in hospital in Syria. I always wondered if she would have survived in a european hospital. I have a few of her books and sometimes she did go on a bit but I just whizzed through the boring stuff, when she wasn't on a history lesson she was quite good. I liked her phiposphy on cycling. I have a couple of Edward Enfields books that are quite good. His simple take on cycling is refreshing. Sort of, grab a bike and go.

She was 76 so maybe just old age

 

[Ticktockmy]

There have been quite a few lady cyclist who have come into cycle touring in later life, Bettina Selby is another one

 

[bigjim]

She was 76 so maybe just old age

Thats not old these days, especially for someone as bright and fit as her. Plus of course you don't just die. It has to be of something. You would think a heart attack would be ruled out and cancer takes its time so...
The mystery deepens.
Anybody read "The man with no cycleclips"?

 

[Crankarm]

I recently read Anne Mustoe's a bike ride (12000 miles around the world) and i really struggled to finish the book, she is a retired school headmistress and it definately showed in the book by the continual and very boring history lesson about the romans, but my faith has been restored by Barbara Savage (miles from nowhere) i'm only half way through the book but it is probably the best book i've read about touring yet (although Alastair Humphreys 2 books are a close call)

Simon

Each to their own. I found all her books very enjoyable.

Her passing last year was very sad. As mentioned she was on tour and got sick in Syria and sadly died, exactly of what I know not. If any one has on-line subscription to the Times then perhaps they can look up her obituary as they did one for her. I can't rmember if they gave her cause of death or not, but worth checking out. I believe she had grown up children and was a grandmum too. So quite a lady to still be touring the world by bike at 76 years old. I believe she was on the whole fit and healthy, well she would have been being a seasoned cyclist. RIP.

 

[Crankarm]

It seems to be a mystery what happened to her. The only info i found was that she passed away in hospital in Syria. I always wondered if she would have survived in a european hospital. I have a few of her books and sometimes she did go on a bit but I just whizzed through the boring stuff, when she wasn't on a history lesson she was quite good. I liked her phiposphy on cycling. I have a couple of Edward Enfields books that are quite good. His simple take on cycling is refreshing. Sort of, grab a bike and go.

Indeed they are and Tim Moore's French Revolutions as well.

 

[Dayvo]

I have a couple of Edward Enfields books that are quite good. His simple take on cycling is refreshing. Sort of, grab a bike and go.

Hmmm! As per Anne Mustoe's books, I found Edward Enfield's book Greece on My Wheels more of a book about how much he thought he knew about history and less of a bike touring account.

But as Crankarm said, each to their own.

 

[Domestique]

I am reading 'Riding It Out' by Pam Goodall at the moment. Normally I find these type of biography books a bit of a struggle to get through in the past, but I am still enjoying this one and nearly 3/4 of the way through.

 

[bigjim]

I find a lot of authors go a bit mad on the historical stuff which can be a bit wearing and I tend to skip these bits when I get bored with it. I don't know whether they are filling up pages or not. Maybe because they are not writers as such. It is always beyond me why they do not go into more depth about the people they meet, all the different characters etc. Stay somewhere overnight and just start with "The next morning I cycled to..." For me the people along the way are of more interest than the history of the place. They often tend to skim a lot of this.
Enfield can be quite funny and Josie Dews styles is good although she is a bit short of material since she settled down.If you are a user of the library, how many books do you give up on and take back unread. I often wonder how some books get published at all, they are so awful.
By the way I read Mustoe's obituary in the times it just said she became ill in Syria and died in hospital. Could have been food poisoning, malaria etc.

 

[Muddyfox]

Sounds like a good recommendation Simon. I love the AH books as you know.

How did you get on with Riding with Ghosts BTW?

Rich i have'nt read riding with ghost's yet .. i got side tracked with some of the other books i got for my birthday but it is next on the list

Are you aware she passed away in November last year.

No i was'nt aware that she had passed away .. when she talked about the cycling side of her touring i found it interesting but the history lesson was just far to over the top for my liking

I finished the Barbara Savage book this morning and i can honestly say that i enjoyed every page and you cant help but to warm to her personality as you read about her life on the road with her husband .. at the end of the book there is a memorial to her as she sadly died in a cycling accident near her home as the book went to press

Simon

 

[ufkacbln]

My touring books are a 1924 set of Muirhead's "Blue Guides"

Lots of info and guidance, and it is fun seeing how things have changed!

 

[Arch]

I always enjoy the Tom Vernon 'Fat man on a bicycle' books - his sense of humour matches mine, and he's nicely self deprecating. There's a fair bit of digression from the actual cycling, but that works for me.

For the same reason, I loved Mike Carden's 'Full English' and 'A bit Scottish'.